Ups, Downs and cold coffee: time and the entrepreneur

A Blog by Matt Newnham

An entrepreneur is something many people aspire to. Stuck in a dead-end job that pays your bills and seems to cost you more in transport to and from your workplace than you earn with ideas about starting one’s own business, appear in the mind. Sadly few of these ideas get much further than the mind and if ideas do get written down they never go much further. This in itself is an indication of what it takes to be an entrepreneur today and yet everything that prevents the idea, no matter how simple, crackpot or sophisticated it may be, can be overcome. Another word that can define an entrepreneur is an overcomer and when the term serial entrepreneur is used these people have overcome more than many can imagine.

Squeezing the juice from a lemon

A lemon has a finite amount of juice that can be squeezed out of it, everyone knows that. Time is the same and there are only twenty-four hours in a day and an hour is always a full sixty minutes, not sixty-one or fifty-nine. However, an entrepreneur knows how to squeeze more time out of a day than there seems to be in it. Time is an entrepreneur’s best friend or its worst enemy and it never stops ticking. Time is the reason why so many great business ideas never get further than the mind or a sheet of paper and learning how to manage time, learning how to rest and at the same time not getting tired, is the art that every person who wants to establish a new business must learn to master. Eternal cups of coffee are not the answer.

The Joy of a new business

It takes almost constant energy to be an entrepreneur and even more energy is required when working in a full-time job. Energy and the inertia effect are present in most things and entrepreneurs are no exception. In the first few days and weeks, the excitement of putting a new business together flows and the new idea is something that fills every vacant moment. Waking up an hour early and squeezing in time once the day shift has ended, becomes the norm and prioritising what matters in life becomes important. There is a fine line between being selfish and selfless and new entrepreneurs will soon discover this. Sacrifices will need to be made but weighing these up inside the big picture of life, health and success have to be considered. At first, many entrepreneurs throw their all at an idea or a business and the ups of the concept motivate them but it never takes long before a few downs hit them.

When time is not managed

Very often the first downs for an entrepreneur come when fatigue sets in. The obsession that drives an entrepreneur becomes another enemy of success and tiredness destroys dreams and people. Mistakes get made when tired, tiredness also wrecks focus and when even a minor upset occurs it can seem as if the world has caved in and no hope exists. As mentioned, there is only so much juice time in a day and appreciating this can prevent the downward spiral that can flow from tiredness, not taking time out and obsessive focus on the business or project ignoring or overlooking small yet important things. Very often in the business of it all, an entrepreneur ends up making a cup of coffee and only drinking it (or not) when it gets cold, there is nothing worse than cold coffee. It is very easy for an idea or business to go downhill fast when time is not managed.

Entrepreneurial time travel

Successful entrepreneurs amaze others, inspire other entrepreneurs and even leave people guessing as to how they have done what they have and do what they do with the same twenty-four hours as everyone else. They don’t have a time machine and nor do they use magic. Successful entrepreneurs know the value of time, how to manage it and how to look after themselves. How time is used, how you pace yourself and planning are the keys to success. It is said time waits for no man and understanding that it cannot be controlled is where success begins. Planning, scheduling and not rushing, patience really is a virtue for an entrepreneur, are what helps and make an entrepreneur in an era of wanting things now, faster and sooner. Entrepreneurs don’t rush and they know that by drinking their coffee while it is hot, pausing for the caffeine fix is not about the energy rush but slowing time down and finding time to think, rest and focus.

About Matt Newnham

Matt Newnham is a passionate business consultant, thought leader and writer. A published author and keynote speaker, Matt thrives on the challenge of helping businesses and individuals succeed through the adrenalin of winning. With a technology, marketing and farming background, Matt’s experience has seen him overcome many challenges that allow his confidence to shine in everything he does. Approachable and always willing to go the extra mile to help others Matt can be contacted via Social Media – LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and via his website – www.mattnewnham.com

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